Sustainable Development - Road to 2050 - Spirituality - the Missing Link

Sanjay Banerji, Professor Emeritus, Amrita School of Business, Amrita University (corresponding author)

s_banerji@amrita.edu Phone: +91 94426 36033 Amrita School of Business Amritanagar P.O. Coimbatore 641 112, India

Dr. Rajiv Prasad, Associate Professor, Amrita School of Business, Amrita University Dr. R Raghu Raman, Chairman, Amrita School of Business, Amrita University Dr. Ramanand K. Amrita School of Engineering, Amrita University “Segregating science and spirituality has been the greatest crime against humanity in the past century”. [1]

Sri Mata Amritanandamayi at UNAI – START Conference

I. Introduction

Mankind witnessed unprecedented growth during the last half of the 20th century, accompanied by equally unprecedented environmental consequences. “Our foot is stuck on the accelerator and we are heading towards an abyss” said the Ban Ki Moon, UN Secretary General (2009) [2] placing us ‘in the driver’s seat’. The SDG resolution also noted, “The future of humanity and of our planet lies in the hands of today’s younger generation who will pass the torch to future generations” [3] (UN 2015).

The theme of this conference: “The World in 2050: Looking Ahead for Sustainable Development” is particularly relevant for all stakeholders in the education sector, as this sector has the unique opportunity to mould the future citizen of our Mother Earth, in order to ‘Bend the Curve’; steer away from the mistakes of the development models followed so far, and embrace the new lifestyle as well as the new development agenda. This paper addresses two topics of the conference: 1. Education for Sustainable Development: An Issue of Consciousness and Values; and 2. Sustainable Consumption and Production. As Rockstrom (2017) [4] says, “The next fifty years would decide humanity’s future for the next 10,000 years.

In this paper, we attempt to answer the question, “How to balance the aspirations of youth, (particularly in the developing nations) against the demands for sustainable development?”

Right education can generate correct awareness and understanding of the imperatives of Sustainable Development Movement (SDM), leading to acceptance of the 17 SDGs and its 169 targets by the youth and children, as well as all adults. This education should not be confined to awareness of the SDG goals and their corresponding targets alone, but also the underlying logic behind these goals and targets. Such an education process should answer the following two questions for it to have any chance of making the necessary impression upon our new generations (i) ‘Why it makes sense to embrace this new lifestyle based on sustainable consumption’? and (ii) ‘Will we be happy or even happier if we embrace these changes’?

To provide the answer to the first question, we need to sensitize and educate them about the multiple challenges that the planet is facing due to the unsustainable practices of the past, as well as the likely hardships that they themselves and their own children are likely to face at a personal, family and community level if we do not make a course correction in time. The answer to the second question is the real, and the more significant and unavoidable challenge – as it involves a transformation of consciousness on a mass scale from happiness through fulfillment of lower order materialistic needs to happiness through self-actualization and self-transcendence [5] [6] (Maslow, 1943;1969). If we succeed in answering these two questions convincingly, our current and future younger generations would embrace the new values of sustainable consumption quite happily and willingly. Following their acceptance, they may be encouraged to get involved in any one of the processes to achieve the targets. Acceptance and involvement are likely to lead to a strong commitment to these goals. We propose that spiritual education along with science holds the key to answering both these important questions. Where Science can provide convincing evidence about the need for change (1st question), spiritual education can provide a convincing, life transforming answer to the second question.

In the following sections, we briefly trace how we ended up in the Anthropocene, the Sustainable Development Agenda, achievements and shortfalls so far, barriers to sustainable development, and how spirituality could be the answer.

II. Post WW-II Developments & it’s Consequences

Humanity at Cross Roads

Last 50 years of 20th century saw mankind occupying the driving seat on planet Earth (Ban-ki-Moon, Rockstrom, et al), with the onset of the epoch ‘Anthropocene’ [7] (Crutzen 2006). The first fifteen years of the 21st century has seen positive developments, most important being the MDGs and SDGs. What we do in the next 35 years will decide if planet earth would continue to be in the Holocene phase for the next 10,000 years, or irreversibly move into a completely new and devastating ice-free state, Ref. Fig. 1 below,

From the time of publication of the ‘Silent Springs’ [8] the global community has been struggling with the issue of Sustainable Development, with varying degrees of success.

The Paris agreement is a welcome sign, but the withdrawal by the US recently has given this healthy process a rude jolt.

It is this backdrop, which sets the context for this conference as well as this paper.

Fig.1. Possibility of entering into an ice-free state (Source: WEF 2017: Beyond the Anthropocene - Stockholm Resilience Centre).

The issue before us is a choice between living in a known environment of the Holocene that mankind has known for the past 10,000 years, since the onset of agriculture and human settlement, or getting into a completely unknown, ice-free state, that would not spare any nation, rich or poor, north or south, developed or developing or whatever distinctions we make. All of creation sails on the same boat: Mother Earth. The tipping points (Fig. 2) identified by science across the globe bears evidence to this fact.

In order for mankind to successfully navigate towards 2050, with a projected population load of 9 – 9.5 billion, with higher aspirations of populations living in Asian, African and Latin American continents, it is absolutely essential to find completely new solutions. Recent history as well as scientific evidence tells us that it is possible to successfully sustain a global population of 9 billion plus, but it is equally certain that ‘Business as Usual’ (BAU) can only lead to disaster.

Fig. 2 – Global Tipping Points (Source: WEF 2017: Beyond the Anthropocene - Stockholm Resilience Centre)

From 1972 onwards, beginning with the Stockholm conference where the concept of Sustainable Development was aptly defined, as being development that does not affect the development potential of the future generations, the world has seen many ups and downs. But as we have seen, there is irrefutable evidence that we are pushing Mother Earth out of the Holocene. Correcting this trend requires ‘Bending the Curve’ (Fig. 3) as proposed by Rockstrom et al.

Fig. 3 ‘Bend the Curve’ (WEF 2017: Beyond the Anthropocene - Stockholm Resilience Centre)

Rockstrom et al have proposed a Carbon Law (Fig. 4) towards this objective, halving the total CO2 emissions every decade, after the emissions peak out in 2020.

These changes call for drastic departure from BAU mindset, and we propose in this paper that a solution may perhaps lie in combining spiritual principles with scientific facts, in order to convince one and all that we must join hands and try as a single body of humanity under the auspices of the UN, and embrace all possible measures in our respective domains, towards fulfilling the SDGs.

Fig. 4 Carbon Law (WEF 2017: Beyond the Anthropocene - Stockholm Resilience Centre.)

III. The Sustainable Development Agenda

The 20th century witnessed two World Wars, followed by the formation of the UN; end of the colonial era; and a spate of development, characterized by the ‘hockey stick’ pattern, seen both in terms of all development indicators as well as in its effects on the environment – see Figs. 5 and 6 below. As noted above, we have the 17 SDGs accompanied by the 169 targets, as well as the Paris Agreement as a path to be followed by mankind.

Fig. 5 Steffen W. et al, The Anthropocene: conceptual and historical perspectives, Phil. Trans. R. Soc. A 2011, pp 851. [9]

Fig. 6 Steffen W. et al, The Anthropocene: conceptual and historical perspectives, Phil. Trans. R. Soc. A 2011, pp 852 We repeat, the IPAT equation [10] shows that consumption is at the root of the problem. Hence implementation of the SDG 12 on Sustainable Consumption and Production assumes greatest significance. The new challenge is: “How to satisfy the aspirations of 4 - 6 billion people, while assuring basic human rights to the remaining 3 – 5 billion and at the same time, retaining Earth’s resilience?”

IV. Achievements and shortfalls towards Sustainable Development

Fortunately, the turn of the current century witnessed the acceptance of the MDGs, SDGs and the historic Paris Agreement on Climate change. The SDGs are in fact one single set of closely inter-linked set of 17 goals. However, the challenges persist. The problems of poverty and accompanying denial of basic human rights to one and all will remain, even if we assume that renewables would become cheap and universal. In addition, we are faced with the problem of ‘two giants colliding’ [11] (Rockstrom 2013) - the rising aspirations of the burgeoning middle class (4 – 6 billion by 2050), and ecological imperatives - with several tipping points hanging as the Damocles’ sword. Aart de Geus Chairman and CEO, Bertelsmann Stiftung and Jeffrey D. Sachs Director, Sustainable Development Solutions Network; in the Preface [12] to the first progress report on the SDGs, point out the complexities and challenges faced by all nations in implementation of the SDGs on two fronts. The first challenge arises from pursuit of economic, societal as well as environmental goals simultaneously. The second one arises from the extended time span of 15 years and beyond, coupled with the resource constraints. They recommend that all of this will call for “…new orientation of governments and a new approach to multi-stakeholder policy design and implementation”. The report (a first of its kind) provides country-wise dashboards reflecting the performance of each nation, on each of the 17 SDGs and uses a color code: green, yellow and red to indicate if a country is well on its way to achieve the goal – green, or if a country is making some progress, but is not enough – yellow, or if the country is way behind the target, and needs to do much more than before. A look at the regional dashboards shows that even in rich (OECD) countries, there are challenges, while the poor nations in Sub-Saharan Africa face the greatest challenges, and need global support. South Asia, with India (no green and 3 yellows) included in it come next, in terms of challenges faced. As mentioned before, humanity is at crossroads, and the current generation would determine if the Earth continues to remain in the stable Holocene period of the next 10,000 years, or irreversibly move out into a hot era, completely unknown to mankind, with unpredictable consequences.

V. Science and Sustainable Development – achievements and limitations

Scientific evidence of bio-diversity loss was evident as far back as in 1950. The next evidence of N & P Loading of marine bodies came up in 1970. Around the same time, scientists noticed the phenomenon of ozone depletion, which was taken up as a global challenge, leading to the success story of the Montreal Protocol to ban the CFCs. The good news is that recent (2015) evidence shows that the ozone layer is regenerating itself. This certainly indicates that the nations of the world can achieve big sustainability goals if they work in a concerted manner. Seen in that light, the recent global acceptance of climate change as a major challenge before mankind, with the historic Paris Agreement in December 2015, is an extremely encouraging sign. The SDGs

include goals to address Land Use & Land Use Change. We have mentioned the ‘Global Tipping Points’ earlier, as well as the proposed ‘Carbon Law’. Despite all the efforts being made, we have a mixed scorecard so far. Science became part of the mainstream sustainability dialogue after the publication of the planetary boundaries. Science, as it has been practiced - separated from spirituality, had enough time and opportunities to prove its capacity to clearly ameliorate global problems – but it has shown many limitations. We shall argue in a later section that mainstreaming spirituality would complement science effectively and thus holds the promise to scale the remaining frontiers in sustainability.

VI. Barriers to sustainable development – individual, national and trans-national

Individual barriers We know that all SDGs are interconnected, and the first and foremost goal is to eradicate poverty. Consider AMMA’s statement on ‘poverty’ [1]:

“There are two types of poverty in the world. The first type is due to the lack of food, clothing and shelter. The second type is the poverty of love and compassion. We need to tackle the second type of poverty first. For, if we have love and compassion, we will wholeheartedly serve and help those who lack food, clothing and shelter”

The second type of poverty involves the human consciousness. As long as individuals feel themselves separated from one another, from other living beings inhabiting the planet, and lack empathy for each another’s suffering, they would not be able to serve the collective as Amma suggests above. Embracing the spiritual principles would enable mankind to rise in the level of its consciousness and regain these qualities of love and compassion. The next barrier, we believe lies in the individual’s urge for seeking happiness through consumption. One might ask, “Why do the messages for sustainable development fall on deaf ears?” The answer to this question may be found in theories of motivation that deal with root causes of human behavior. For example, why, I myself agree to take a car ride in the city, for no real necessity. It is because I value personal comfort over the considerations like sustainability that affect the entire planet. My motivations are rooted in my selfish and short sighted short term interests and not in the well being of the collective. The idea is to investigate such inclinations, with a view to figuring out the root cause/s behind such behavior. Without understanding these root causes, we cannot transform people’s consciousness and values from narrow selfish interests to well being of the collective. People learn in one of the two ways, (i) expansion of awareness from the interests of ‘self’ to interests of ‘all’; or (ii) through painful experience which forces a change in perspective and hence behaviour. In connection with the second point, there is a very insightful Bengali saying that may be quoted here:

“Even if you see my pain from a snake bite, hear me crying out of pain, and seemingly understand my pain, it is impossible for you to feel the pain unless you are yourself stung by a venomous snake”.

We have already seen the power of the painful experience in effecting change in the arena of sustainability. The ozone hole affected large segments of population, including all in OECD nations, and hence received global support which helped us to come together to address and solve it. Fortunately, there was a rather simple solution as well to this problem. But, the larger problems facing us now do not admit of opportunity for learning from painful experience. They would be too disruptive for us to be able to absorb their effects. The only way is to try to transform the minds and attitudes of all human beings – a noble but very challenging task. As the Buddha said, ‘winning over one’s own desires is 1000 times more difficult than winning against armies 1000 strong’. Learning, teaching and embracing the spiritual principles that help us expand our awareness and world view offer the only viable and practical way to meet the situation. Hence, in addition to the statement that ‘Business as Usual (BAU)’ is no more feasible, we suggest that ‘Lifestyles as Usual (LAU)’ also is no more possible. All right thinking people, especially those from the developed nations, who are seen as role models for the rest of the world, might consider this proposal of embracing and imparting spiritual education seriously. Scientifically determined metrics like the per capita Carbon footprint measurement may be good complementary tools to see how far we are succeeding in generating this new kind of awareness. National barriers Every nation faces its own socio-economic as well as geo-political circumstances, coupled with the environment it has inherited. Together they pose specific challenges. The interests of the rich (with control over a majority of the resources) within a country do not necessarily align with the SDGs. Added to it; we have the personal stances of the political leadership. The latest example of this may be seen in the US deciding to withdraw from the Paris Agreement. Perhaps all national leaders need a better appreciation of the inter-connected nature of the Earth System we live in. Trans-national barriers Looking at the challenges from a global perspective, we believe that the strong and weak solutions proposed by Fuchs and Lorek [13] and Hobson [14] offer a good perspective. As stated earlier (IPAT equation), consumption has been identified as a root cause leading to the present difficulties. SDG 12 addresses this unique issue by trying to advocate sustainable consumption and production (SCP). Fuchs and Lorek define ‘strong’ and ‘weak’ solutions for SCP as under:

“… increase in the in the efficiency of consumption: (the production element) as weak measures and changes in consumption patterns and reductions in consumption levels: (the consumption element) as strong measures.”

They have pointed out inadequate action towards SCP by almost all concerned actors including United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UNDESA) that houses The Commission on Sustainable Development (CSD) and the Division for Sustainable Development (DSD), UNEP, OECD, Other Actors (National governments and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and finally the Consumers. They conclude:

“Both consumers and business (and therefore also governments) tend to oppose strong sustainable consumption measures despite claims to the contrary. International governmental organizations (IGOs), in particular, have avoided strong sustainable consumption issues”.

How do we convince everyone that adoption of the ‘strong’ solutions for SCP is in our common interest? We believe that spiritual principles hold the key. We further note that there are contradictions within the UN System. The UN SDG resolution ‘commits to make fundamental changes in SCP’; and asks for mandatory ‘contributions from all actors for changing unsustainable consumption patterns’. Consumption patterns have been linked with lifestyles, and the need for appropriate education for SCP has been recognized as an important segment in the 10YFP. However, 10YFP – SLE [15] envisions “…A world where sustainable lifestyles are desirable, beneficial and accessible for everyone …” This vision shies away from expressing the imperative for adopting sustainable lifestyles. A more ambitious vision might be: “We envision a world where sustainable lifestyles are embraced by all sectors of society, including governments, the business sector and civil society”.

VII. How can Spirituality join hands with Science for Sustainable Development?

We begin with some supporting statements. At the UNAI – Amrita seminar [1] (July 2015), Chancellor Sri Mata Amritanandamayi Devi (AMMA) gave a clarion call to combine spiritual energy with the scientific knowledge as a means towards realizing the SDGs. She said,

“I often reflect deeply on the future of the Earth, the preservation of nature, and the disappearing harmony between humanity and nature. This contemplation has led me to the conviction that science, technology, and spirituality must unite in order to ensure a sustainable and balanced existence of our world. The present age and the world around us demand this transformation. “Spirituality is also a science—it is a valid branch of knowledge that cannot be ignored”

In his remarks, [16] the UNDP Ambassador H. E. Kaha Imnadze, Permanent Representative of Georgia to the United Nations quoted Sri Mata Amritanandamayi:

“We can no longer afford to see these two streams of knowledge [scientific knowledge and spiritual wisdom] as flowing in opposite directions. In truth, they

complement one another… we will find that we are able to create a mighty river—a river whose waters can remove suffering and spread life to all of humanity.”

The Vivekananda Kendra in Kannyakumari, India publishes a monthly Newsletter, ‘Echoes of Eco’ [17] providing interesting quotes and information related to sustainability issues. We provide 5 quotations from Western thinkers, for the April 2017 issue:

“Lester Brown and his Worldwatch Institute, (www.worldwatch.org/) warn that mankind is on the wrong track, cutting the very branch [of the tree] on which it is sitting.

“Edward Goldsmith calls for a total spiritual revolution to overcome our ecological problems.

“Fritjof Capra has identified a number of parallel points between Ultra-modern science and Eastern Mysticism imaging creation as an integrated whole with hidden connections. “Schumacher and Hazel Henderson tried “to solve it at economic, spiritual, social, and technical levels and come out with practical suggestions for sustainable development. These suggestions are based on an integrated vision of reality, marching in the footsteps of our Rishis, Gandhiji and the Eastern thought in general”.

“Al Gore Former American Vice President of USA stated, “Both in our personal lives and in our political decisions, we have an ethical duty to pay attention, resist distraction, be honest with one another and accept responsibility for what we do - whether as individuals or together. It’s the same gyroscope; either it provides balance or it doesn't. In the words of Aristotle: "Virtue is one thing."

Why spirituality must be integrated into the SDM? The above statements emphasize the utter need for seeking solutions in the realms of spirituality. All human endeavors are aimed at gaining ‘happiness’ for oneself. Spiritual principles tell us that our true nature is blissful existence. We have lost our connection with our own true nature, and spirituality helps us to get re-connected with our own inner Self. There have been significant theories of human motivation and personality which have suggested that happiness of different people does not come from the same sources [5], [18] [19] (Maslow,1943; Erikson,1963;Jung,2014). Even within the life of the same person we can see that the relative values of objects change as she/he gains in maturity. For example, the attraction that a child has for chocolates becomes less intense as she matures into an adult. We posit based on the insights of eminent personality theorists such as those cited above, that this happens because of development of awareness from a more rudimentary level to mature levels expected of adults. Maslow’s famous theory of motivation which states that human needs are arranged in a hierarchy starting from lower levels of physical needs, safety and belongingness to higher levels of self-esteem, self-actualization and self-transcendence is one such theory among others which can be used to understand these shifts in motivation as the human consciousness

moves from lower level of awareness to a higher one. An insecure and average young man seeking to eke out a career in law later transforms into the self-transcendent Mahatma Gandhi inspiring hundreds of millions of people across the world for the last hundred years. We can clearly see the movement across the needs hierarchy in his case. Ancient Indian texts (Taittiriya Upanishad) gave a similar theory rooted in five levels or sheaths that constitute the human consciousness called the Panchakosha (Five sheaths) theory. It states that a man is composed of five sheaths starting from the most gross (least evolved) to the most subtle (most evolved) level. These are the bodily sheath (annamayakosha), vitality sheath (pranamayakosha), emotional sheath (manomayakosha), intellectual sheath (vijnanamayakosha) and the bliss or happiness sheath (anandamayakosha). Whenever the intellect of a man stops, he enjoys his own inner happiness because of contact with the last sheath beyond the intellect viz. the bliss sheath. For example, when watching a movie; immersed in producing a work of art; state of deep meditation; and so on. Modern psychology research has validated this ancient insight [20] (for example, see Csikszentmihalyi, 1988). Beyond these five sheaths is the centre of one’s being which is called the ‘atman’ (in Sanskrit) or the ‘soul’. This soul is the real ‘self’ that inhabits the body-mind system and is essentially divine in nature. More a person is able to come in contact with his ‘soul’ consciously; more sublime, loving, wise and selfless his personality becomes. An average person is not able to touch the deepest core sheath or the ‘self’ consciously. If he/she could do so, he/she would be able to remain happy with very little on the material plane as a deep sense of contentment and love for all would flood his/her consciousness. Spiritual practices like meditation help a man to gradually deepen his awareness of these deeper sheaths and that is why they are so therapeutic in nature. There are hundreds of studies now that have established the validity of this claim made by the ancient Indian sages (benefits of spiritual practices). In order to link this ancient insight with modern scientific deliberations, we propose a spiritual model of cognition, (adapted from Raymond, Giusti, Barthel – 2017) [21].

We super-impose ‘Soul’ over the ‘Embodied’ model of cognition proposed by Raymond et al (2017), in a way that depicts it as being at the center of the entire Universe (Mind, body, society & culture and environment – the entire creation in one word). At the same time, it touches and goes beyond the boundaries of each of these elements; indicating that the Soul is in everything and beyond! We would like to name it as the ‘Spiritual Model of Cognition’. “The Soul or ‘Atman’ is like the bottom of the ocean, even when a cyclone is raging on its surface, the bottom is calm and quiet as ever” says AMMA, explaining the true nature of our existence. It is the moving force behind all actions, but it does not participate in any action. This is why the circle of action and perception does not touch it. It is in fact a microcosm of the entire Universe, with a built in potential to experience and get connected (Yoga means connection) to its own divine and transcendent source.

In order to experience the essence of spirituality, Indian Masters have laid stress on completely calming of the mind, which always rushes outwards following the five senses. Sri Krishna says in the Gita:

“The turbulent senses, O Arjuna, do violently snatch away the mind of even a wise man, striving after perfection. For the mind which follows in the wake of the wandering senses, carries away his discrimination, as a wind carries off its course a boat on waters,”

Bhagawat Gita, Chapter II, verse 60 and 67

Soul

SPIRITUAL

Quoted by Swami Budhananda in ‘Mind and Its Control’, (1971) pp 15

A broader discussion of Spirituality It follows from the above discussion that an education system that teaches everyone the core principles of spirituality which is nothing but ‘science of happiness’, would help create a society that is contented with lower level of consumption as it would understand that true happiness comes from evolving spiritually and connecting with the deeper levels within, than from an excessively materialistic lifestyle. We propose that this approach is necessary for bringing in the required changes in our fundamental beliefs and goals in life that enables everyone to lead a fulfilling life, while simultaneously contributing towards sustainable development. The ancient spiritual model explained above naturally led to a way of life in ancient India where the purification of mind was the most necessary ingredient to attain long term and refined happiness. It was encapsulated in terms of four fundamental pillars of human life viz. dharma (ethics), kaama (fulfillment of desires), artha (the wealth or the material means which enable such fulfillment) and moksha (self-realization or enlightenment). Earning sufficient wealth was necessary to fulfill one’s own and family members’ desires, but it was to be done guided by the principles of ‘dharma’ or ethics. Leading such an ethical life based on sound values or principles such as truth, honesty, non-covetousness, care for other living beings etc. led to a gradual purification of the mind, which was considered a prerequisite for spiritual evolution and ultimately enlightenment. Viewed from the above context, Spirituality becomes a way of life upholding timeless moral, ethical and human values. All great epics like the Mahabharata, the Iliad; great authors like Shakespeare, Milton and Tagore; all spiritual leaders (The Pope, The Archbishop and AMMA to name a few living today); all the great humanists like Gandhi and Martin Luther King; many great writers, philosophers, scientists, artists, musicians, and inspired people from all walks of life have been upholding these values in multiple ways. Several leading scholars of our times (Otto Scharmer, Peter Senge, Arthur Zajone, author of ‘Earthdance’ –Elisabet Sahtouris, David Korten, S K Chakraborty and many more) base their arguments on similar lines. If mankind embraces these principles consciously, sustainability is certainly assured.

VIII. Proposed pathway

Based upon the above deliberations, we propose the following: 1. The solution lies in rediscovering and embracing the spiritual principles in order to

integrate them in all aspects of our collective life. We quote AMMA [22] again here:

“If Amma’s wealthy children made up their minds, they could alleviate the suffering of these [poor] people to a great extent. Amma would like to urge Her wealthy children to be compassionate and serve the people who are poor and suffering.”

2. For this, education at all levels needs to include sustainability and its links with science and spirituality. HEIs [23] could integrate “the SDGs into their sustainability strategies, research, teaching, pedagogy, and campus practices” and become “key drivers for achieving the SDGs”.

We make a few concrete suggestions for this:

• To begin with, include sustainability in the HEI’s vision and mission statements.

• Include value based courses based on principles of spirituality with practical components like Yoga, meditation, Tai Chi, Vipassana etc. right from earliest level of schooling itself; values imparted at this level are likely to be permanent.

• The next step might be to include sustainability topics, with its scientific and spiritual foundations; as a required learning goal of all the programs.

• All accreditation bodies in all domains; like AACSB, EQUIS, AMBA etc. in management domain and ABET etc. in engineering domain may be requested to include this as a recommended learning goal for accreditation

• All national bodies like CBSE, ICSE, UGC, AICTE, IMC in India, and their counterparts in other nations; could incorporate these requirements in their statutes.

• SDSN might call for organizing a special UN session focusing on this theme: “Sustainability Education – Links with Science and Spirituality: An Issue of Consciousness and Values”.

3. In turn, we need a paradigm shift from the current view that: ‘consumption produces

happiness’ to ‘holistic development of man through a sustainable lifestyle produces happiness’.

4. Mainstreaming spirituality in our sustainability dialogue is essential for the Holocene

period to continue for another 10,000 years. Our educational system requires an overhauling, towards this objective.Our value systems need to be aligned with these principles. We must ensure all Stakeholders’ acceptance and participation, including business, governments, civil society, educators and non-state actors including religious leaders. Since business plays the dominant role in today’s world, it is important to recognize the potential role of business, as reported in the report: “Future of Spaceship Earth” [24].

5. We propose initiating a mass movement towards SCP, making it fashionable.

IX. Conclusion

Though we are academics, we have been practicing spirituality in our own lives for the last many years. We have seen the benefits in terms of peace, contentment and more holistic thinking in our own lives. We have made an attempt in this paper to show how and why spiritual principles and value based education hold one of the two keys – the other being Science, to the challenge of sustainability.

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